The chemical modification of surfaces, to achieve desired chemical and/or physical characteristics, has been previously described. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,722,906; 4,973,493; 4,979,959; and 5,002,582 (the disclosures of each of which are incorporated herein by reference), for example, relate to surface modification by the use of latent reactive groups to achieve covalent coupling of reagents such as biomolecules and synthetic polymers to various substrates. The preferred latent reactive group is typically described as a photochemically reactive functional group (i.e., photoreactive group) that, when exposed to an appropriate energy source, undergoes a transformation from an inactive state (i.e., ground state) to a reactive intermediate capable of forming covalent bonds with appropriate materials.
Such latent reactive groups are typically described as being used to first derivatize a desired compound (e.g., thermochemically), followed by the application (photochemically) of the derivatized compound to a surface. Such a sequential approach is suitable in many situations, but the approach can lack such attributes as speed, versatility, and ease of use, such as for target molecules that are inherently difficult to first derivatize.
What would be clearly desired would be a reactive reagent that provides an optimal combination of the speed, versatility, and ease of use necessary for the derivatization of suitable surfaces, particularly one that is useful either simultaneously with the application of a target molecule, or one that can be used to prime a surface prior to the application of a target molecule.